Puppy Love
by Vile.EXE
Summary: Slightly before The Hunter's Better Days. Haruto, having been freed from the Number, is able to enjoy himself. Life throws him an unexpected way to make it better when he meets a girl by pure chance. WAFF of an unlikely couple: HarutoxDog-chan! Done on request from a viewer.


**Vile: Hi, everyone! Vile here with the one-shot I said I was going to write back at the end of the 6-in-1. This story is the first one I did on request, being requested by theforgottenpeople96. The couple is one you wouldn't expect, being HarutoxDog-chan, but TFP96 showed me the appeal it has, so I cooked up this fluffy one-shot to bring this unlikely couple to light. Now, to clear things up, since Dog-chan's age was never stated in ZEXAL, I decided to make her ten years old, just like Haruto, but she was short and frail for her age. That also helps the plot start up. At any rate, insert standard disclaimer here, and I hope TFP96, as well as the rest of you, like this batch of fluff. Enjoy!**

**Story Routine, Set!  
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**Computer Voice: Execute!  
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Puppy Love

*Three Days After Numbershot 71*

Haruto was walking through Heartland on his own, able to finally enjoy himself after being trapped by the Number card. He took a deep breath of fresh air. All of a sudden, a dog rushed past him, throwing off his balance. "Uwaah!" He yelped as he fell over backwards. "Ow…" The dog stopped and looked back at him.

"Wanna!" A voice called out. Female. Haruto saw a girl his height running toward him. She had big blue eyes and poofy pink hair that resembled dog ears in the front, wearing a yellow sundress with a puffy white edge at the top that tied into a knot, pink and yellow striped socks, and pink shoes. Oddly, her legs seemed wobbly. She looked at him when she got near him. "Hey, are you all right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Haruto said as he got up. "Your dog knocked me over."

The girl gave a small scowl to the dog. "Bad dog, Wanna! I told you not to run away!" She took a step forward, but her legs wobbled greatly, forcing her to lose her balance. "Whoaaaa… Whaa!" She was about to fall over backwards, but Haruto quickly caught her. "Whew… Th-Thanks."

"No problem." Haruto said. "Is something wrong with your legs?"

"I-I had a growth spurt not too long ago. Even though I'm 10 years old, I used to be really short." The girl said. "I'm still not used to my new height, especially since my legs aren't very strong."

Haruto gave a sympathetic look. "Hmm…" He then got an idea, snapping his fingers. "I'll help you!"

The girl suddenly snapped her head to him with a blush. "H-Huh…?"

"I can help you keep your balance on your legs. All you need is a little practice!" Haruto chirped with a smile. "Whaddya say?" He held out a hand.

The girl's face was very red. She didn't expect him to outright offer to help her. She just met him! But she was touched by the offer and smiled gently. "O-Okay. Thanks." She took his hand and shook it.

"My name's Haruto." The boy said. "What's yours?"

"E-Everyone just calls me… D-Dog-chan." The girl replied. "Nice to meet you." Haruto let out a small laugh. "I… I have to go. Okaa-chan wants me home soon."

"All right. Maybe I'll see you tomorrow?" Haruto asked. Dog-chan nodded shyly and walked off, her dog trailing her, her legs wobbling. Haruto shook his head. _'We've got some work to do.'_

*Two Days Later*

Dog-chan met Haruto again in the park to help her out with her legs. They had met the day before, and Haruto helped her out using two railings in the park, and after a couple hours of practice, Dog-chan was able to start walking at good speeds without toppling over, so long as she was holding on to something. "Go easy, Dog-chan." Haruto told her, Dog-chan surrounded by the same two railings, yet not holding onto them to try and keep her balance herself. She was moving slowly, trying to keep her legs steady. "Okay, go a little faster." The girl picked up a little speed, making it to the other end of the rails. "All right, good so far. Come back to the other side at a quicker speed." Dog-chan turned around and started walking back toward Haruto faster than before. She tried hard to keep her legs straight while walking, a few sweat beads forming on her head. After some effort, she made it back to Haruto without toppling over or losing speed, bringing a smile to her face. "You did it, Dog-chan!" Haruto chirped while Dog-chan laughed with joy. Haruto went for a high-five and Dog-chan tried to meet it, but as fate would have it, her legs wobbled again and he ended up tripping over, knocking Haruto over and landing on him. "OOF!"

"Oww… G-Gomen-nasai, Haruto-kun." Dog-chan groaned. It was then that the two kids realized the position they had ended up in as a result of the fall, blushing madly. Dog-chan quickly got off of Haruto. "G-Gomen-nasai!"

"D-Don't worry about it, Dog-chan." Haruto said, his face still bright red. "I guess we still have some work to do." He let out an uneasy laugh, which Dog-chan mirrored. He had no clue that a certain person had seen the exchange.

*Three Days Later*

Haruto had snuck out of Jenaveve's house to see Dog-chan again and help her with her legs. Kaito had busted him with Dog-chan and had even seen her fall on top of him, and he was mortified. They would definitely tease him more if they knew he had left to see her again. "Where is she?" Haruto wondered as he walked around Heartland.

"Haruto-kun!" A voice called. Haruto smiled and turned to see Dog-chan running up to him. She was doing rather well on her feet today, he noticed.

"Hey, Dog-chan!" Haruto greeted. "Your legs aren't wobbling today!"

Dog-chan giggled. "You've been a big help, Haruto-kun." She wobbled a bit, but kept her balance. "But I'm not perfect yet."

All of a sudden, a rubber ball was kicked in their direction, which Haruto caught. "Hey, over here!" Someone called. Haruto and Dog-chan looked to see a bunch of kids their age in the nearby park, one of them waving at them. "Come play with us!"

Haruto looked at Dog-chan with a smile. "You up for it?" Dog-chan nodded with a smile. Haruto kicked the ball back to the kids before he and Dog-chan ran to the park.

*A Little Bit Later*

Haruto slid into home base to make the final point to break the tiebreaker. "Safe! We win!" One of the boys chirped. Haruto laughed in victory as his team came in for congrats. "Way to go, Haruto!" "Nice slide!"

Next thing Haruto knew, he was on the receiving end of a hug from the pink-haired girl. "You were great, Haruto-kun!" Haruto felt his whole face heat up and gave a goofy smile with an uneasy laugh.

"Well, I've gotta go home." One of the kids said before running off.

"Me too. See ya!" A girl said before leaving. One by one, the kids left the park, leaving Haruto, Dog-chan, and the first kid.

"Hey, you two are pretty cool kids." The boy said. "Maybe we can hang out again?"

"You bet, Touya!" Haruto said, Dog-chan nodding. Touya bid them goodbye and ran off with the kickball while Haruto and Dog-chan left. "You did great today, Dog-chan. I think you're used to your new legs now."

Dog-chan blushed slightly with a giggle. "Arigatou, Haruto-kun. I owe it to you helping me. I don't know if I would've gotten used to it without you." Haruto closed his eyes and gave a small laugh, but he then felt something soft touch his cheek, but only for a second. As his head tried to register what was going on, Dog-chan was already running home with a bright red face.

*A Little Later*

Haruto opened the door back into Jenaveve's house, almost in a trance. Kaito was on the couch watching TV, and he noticed Haruto coming in. The older Tenjo boy had a knowing smirk. "Another fun day, Haruto? It seems like it."

"Uh, w-what do you mean, Nii-san?" Haruto stuttered, snapping out of his trance.

"You had a dreamy look on your face, and you're holding your cheek for some reason." Kaito said. Haruto realized that he was indeed touching his cheek. "Something happen with that girl, Haruto?"

Haruto blushed and looked away nervously. "I… I think she…" He touched his cheek again.

"Kissed you?" His brother completed the sentence, and Haruto slowly nodded. Kaito smiled and walked over to his brother, placing his hand on his head and ruffling his hair. "Already got a girl to kiss you. That's my little brother."

"Nii-san…" Haruto breathed, embarrassed, trying to swat his hand away.

Kaito let out a small laugh. "Gomen, Haruto. But I've seen how you helped her. You're a regular good Samaritan."

Haruto gave a small smile. "Arigatou, Nii-san. But I'm not sure if I actually like her or not."

"Well, let me ask you this. What do you think of her now?"

Haruto gave it some thought. "Well… she's cute, she's a nice person… a little clumsy, but I've helped her with that… and I really like hanging out with her."

Kaito ruffled his hair again. "Give it some time, Haruto. Feelings can become clear at any time. I was friends with Jenaveve for months before I realized I had feelings for her. You'll figure it out."

"Arigatou, Nii-san." Haruto said, hugging his brother.

*Ten Days Later*

Haruto continued to hang out with Dog-chan over the next several days. She was now fully used to her new height. The two of them hung out with Touya and his friends a lot, but they also spent a lot of time to themselves. Over that time, Haruto began to understand what Kaito told him, as he felt their bond grow all the time. Not to mention he noticed Dog-chan's blushing around him, making him think that maybe she had feelings for him. During this time, he also learned that her real name was Izuna, though he still called her Dog-chan. By the present time, Haruto was very close to deciding that he did like Dog-chan as more than a friend, but he was still on the fence.

When he reached the place they were going to meet at, she wasn't there. "What the…? Where is she?" Haruto wondered. He decided to look around for her, thinking she couldn't be that far behind.

As he neared the park, however, he heard a scream. Snapping his head to the park, his eyes widened when he saw Dog-chan being pushed to the ground by a bigger kid, which also made him glare. "Wimp. Hand over your cards!"

Dog-chan looked back at the older boy with a fearful look and let out a scream. Before the kid could do anything, he was tackled away from her by the blue-haired boy. "H-Haruto-kun?"

"What's your problem, pal?" Haruto yelled angrily. "You want cards? Why don't you get a job and earn your own money?"

The bigger kid got up and growled. "I'm gonna make you pay for that, runt." He lunged at Haruto, but the boy quickly jumped and did almost like a leapfrog maneuver over the bigger kid's back. Once he landed, Haruto quickly tripped the bigger kid, sending him fully to the ground.

Haruto walked up to the bigger kid's head. "Do you give up yet?" As if to answer him, the bigger kid's fist shot up and socked Haruto, sending him to the ground in a spin. Haruto picked himself up with a glare.

"You don't know what you're getting into, runt." The bigger kid said, beating his fists together.

Haruto growled, his power beginning to show itself. "I should be the one saying that." He reared his hand back with the palm opened before shooting it forward, sending out a small shockwave of his power that knocked the bigger kid back a bit, back to the ground.

This scared the bully, who sat up with wide eyes. "What… what are you?"

Haruto lowered his arm and put on a deceptively innocent smile. "I'm just a normal kid… with an abnormal quality." The bully quickly scrambled to his feet and took off whimpering. Haruto then walked over to Dog-chan and held out a hand. "You OK?"

"Y-Y-Yeah…" Dog-chan stuttered, taking his hand so he could help her up. "A-Arigatou, Haruto-kun…" Dog-chan then quickly hugged Haruto. The boy blushed, but returned the hug. He could feel that this was the push he needed. The fact that he wanted to protect Dog-chan when she was in trouble made it clear that he liked her: Kaito was like that with Jenaveve. Saying he loved her was going way too fast, but he could confidently say he liked her. Haruto turned his head toward Dog-chan to say something, but she was going to kiss his cheek at that time, causing her lips to land on his own. Both of their eyes widened, but they were too stunned to break apart. After a few seconds, they finally managed to separate, both of their faces glowing red. Neither could form any words a few moments.

All of a sudden, Haruto's D-Gazer beeped, saving him from the silence. He activated it with silence. "H-Hello?"

_"Haruto? You all right?"_ Kaito asked, slightly worried. "You're blushing like heck."

"Oh, Nii-san. Y-Yeah, I'm all right." Haruto said, though it was a total lie.

Kaito didn't quite believe him, but decided to let it go. _"All right, Haruto. Jenaveve's mother brought lunch home, so hurry back so we can eat!"_

Haruto allowed himself a smile. "Okay, Nii-san. Be back soon." He said, deactivating his D-Gazer. Haruto then turned to Dog-chan, who was still blushing madly and was now fidgeting with her fingers. "So… I guess I'll see you tomorrow?"

"…O-Okay." Dog-chan stuttered. Haruto then turned around and headed back to Jenaveve's house. Once he was out of eye range, Dog-chan placed her hand over her chest and took a deep breath with a smile.

*Back at Jenaveve's House*

Haruto entered the house to see Kaito, Jenaveve, and her parents eating at the table. The first thing Kaito noticed was the wide grin on Haruto's face as he took his seat next to Kaito. "Attaboy." Kaito whispered as he ruffled his brother's hair again.

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**Vile: I personally went "Awww..." when I wrote this, so I hope you did too. I also hope I did okay with Dog-chan's personality, since there wasn't much to it (hey, she was only in one episode). At any rate, if you enjoyed this story, leave a review for me, and I'll have the next chapter of my works soon. Ja ne!**

**Computer Voice: Vile, logging out.**


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